Last of the Iron Fangs: Chapter 5 - A Fang of Iron

Chapter 5 : A Fang of Iron

Ssilmath stood on top of a hill overlooking a pair of crystal clear lakes, the familiar scents and feel of the Sslanis Jungle embracing him. He was dressed in a pure white loincloth, with his arms, shoulders and feet encased in strong, impenetrable scalemail armor dyed a deep black. Across his chest was a leather strap, holding a large, scabbarded sword onto his back. In the valley below, several Sslik stone huts stood, surrounded by temporary shelters. The village was filled with all shape and size of Sslik, going about their business.

?What?? The befuddled Sslik wondered, looking around in wonderment. ?This...this can't be real.?

He slowly walked down the hill, accepting that he had truly died and left the horrid existence of his life. As he approached, a young Sslik spotted him and pointed, yammering to it's parent, who turned to get a better view. When Ssilmath got close, it bowed it's head to him, as did all of the other nearby Sslik. The blue reptile smiled, knowing that he had truly gone to heaven. He walked past the other Sslik and to the largest stone hut, wondering what other wonderful things he would find.

Inside was a richly decorated living area, just a single room, but with soft rugs, plenty of cushions, shield and weapons on the walls and a large, low table in the middle of it made of priceless jungle woods. Sitting near the table was a young, beautiful Sslik. It was thin of body and limb, with a short snouted head covered in a mess of long white feathers, it's skin a mottle of black and green scales. Ssilmath grinned and walked over, sitting down nearby. The other Sslik looked at him for a moment, then it's eyes became sad.

?It is wonderful, isn't it?? the Sslik asked in a soft, melodic voice.

?What else could heaven be,? Ssilmath replied, a little surprised. ?It's like being in a dream.?

?That's what it is,? the green one replied. ?This is a dream, my Vengeance.?

?Your vengeance?? Ssil asked, shocked. ?My name is...Why do you call me that? Who are you??

?My dear Vengeance,? the other Sslik said as it gently touched his face. ?That is the name I gave you when I chose to protect you. My name is Kass. Do you not recognize me??

?No...Kass...I know that name, somehow,? Ssilmath said as it dropped it's hand again. ?But...I can't remember where.?

?I am your Goddess,? Kass said sadly. ?I am the creator of the Sslik, and their protector, until the Gods saw fit to leave Istaria and it's occupants to their fate.?

?My...Goddess?? Ssilmath whispered. ?But, I don't understand.?

?You don't need to, not yet,? Kass smiled. ?But I have to show you something. Your memories need to be unlocked. You have kept them held back for far too long.?

Kass gestured with a hand, a slight wind blowing through the hut. Ssilmath shivered with the wind, noticing an almost greenish tint to it. As soon as it died down, an oppresive heat immediately blasted him, glaring sunlight invading into the hut.

?What is this?? Ssil asked, standing up quickly and looking outside. What had been lush jungle and grassland was now a baked desert. Below him was a terraced city seemingly hacked out of a cliffside, but away to the north could be seen another city, not entirely finished. Numerous creatures moved about in the city below, most too small to be made out, but a few large, winged lizards could be seen.

?This is the town of Emethrin, shortly before the reign of the king Nazderon,? Kass said, gesturing to the adobe and stone walls. She started walking down towards the main town, motioning for Ssil to follow. ?Remember, this is a dream, but I need to show you why you are my Vengeance.?

As they moved into the more populated parts, the two Sslik started drawing nasty looks from the assorted mammals. Here and there a Sslik followed a mammal, it's head bowed and, in some cases, neck collared. Ssilmath looked at these Sslik with a combination of pity and shame. Before long, he couldn't stand it anymore and looked to Kass.

?What is this?? He growled. ?Why are these Sslik following so meekly??

?Talk to that human over there,? Kass said, pointing to a woman with shoulder length black hair and a revealing brown outfit. ?She will let you know how the Sslik are treated.?

Ssilmath nodded, then walked up to her, his armor jingling slgightly. The woman looked at him with clearly visible disdain, then a combination of fear and disgust as he got closer. She backed away slightly as he got closer, then grimaced and shook her head before standing up to the big reptile.

?What do you want, Sslik?? she spat. ?Don't come any closer, or I'll call the guards.?

?What? Call the guards?? Ssilmath stopped short, confused. ?Why??

?You brutes aren't allowed to carry weapons,? the human snarled. ?You aren't even allowed out of those stinking jungles unless as a slave.?

?Slavery? Why are the Sslik always slaves?? the blue reptile hissed, narrowing his eyes. The woman simply raised a warning finger, pointing it at several heavily armed guards. Ssil grunted and took a step back. ?What did we do??

?You must be more stupid than the others,? she said, crossing her arms. ?Everyone knows that you lizards invaded our lands. So we pushed you back into your jungles, and would have wiped you out had the Saris not stepped in and sheltered you. Bah, it makes sense, one animal saving another.?

Ssil glanced at the guards and decided he could take them. He lowered his stance and was about to reach for his sword when Kass placed a hand on his arm. She shook her head slightly, then closed her eyes, a transluscent wind kicking up and blowing a whirlwind of sand around the two of them, blocking off all view of the town.

?Vengeance, that is the beginnings of our people,? she said quietly. ?I created the Sslik in my image, and placed them where they would thrive most. However, as was natural, they spread forth, off of the island of Lesser Aradoth and onto the main continent. There they encountered the mammals during the Age of Warrior-Kings, and both sides immideately attacked the other out of fear. My people would have been wiped out if not for the feline Saris.?

?It was a cat that made my life so miserable,? Ssilmath snarled, trying to see out of the vortex of sand. ?If they are so great, how could they be so horrible.?

?Not all Saris are like him,? Kass said sadly. ?The strongest advocates for Sslik rights have been Saris, and it was they who first had the idea of having the Sslik throw down the bridge that connected them to the world.?

?So, is that why you call me Vengeance?? Ssil asked, looking at his Goddess. ?Have the Sslik always been so oppressed??

?No. After the bridge was thrown down, the Sslik recovered and built the city of Sslanis, and developed a strong presence, so that their next encounter with the mammals was very different,? Kass said, smiling. ?They divided into tribes, some going this way, others that way, but all were united when the recently formed Istarian Empire decided to delve into the Sslanis jungle again. After a few initial skirmishes, they decided to try a different tactic.

?The Empire decided to forgo an overt war, and instead tainted the Sslik with their ways,? She spat, anger on her face. ?They introduced my people to other dieties, to new commerce, to greed, to corruption. And then, slowly but surely, they began to swallow up the tribes, taking control of each one and pacifying them. It took many years, but two hundred years ago, well into the Age of Lamentations, the only free Sslik tribe were the Iron Fangs, and due to the war with the Withered Aegis, they were left alone.?

?The Withered Aegis?? Ssilmath mused. ?So much of this is new to me...Why can't I remember any of what you are speaking of??

?The Withered Aegis are the undead, united by Torrin Macalir, and have waged war with the living for the last three hundred years,? Kass replied. ?Twenty eight years ago, you were born into the Iron Fang tribe, a ragtag bunch of nomads who still served me and had remained free. Twenty three years ago, they were wiped out save for one. A year later, the Aegis assulted and besiged the city of the dwarves.?

?My tribe, wiped out?? Ssil growled. ?But...I don't remember any of it.?

?My Vengeance,? Kass whispered. ?See now why you have been chosen as such.?

The vortex lifted, and once again Ssilmath stood on top of the hill overlooking the two lakes. It was now night time, and below twinkled many lights and campfires. A large humber of tents and temporary huts had been erected, and an entire tribe of Sslik lay sleeping. Nearby stood a guard, watching the surrounding jungle, bow in hand and and a spear nearby. He didn't seem to see Ssilmath, but kept looking around, seeming to pierce the darkness with his sharp gaze.

Suddenly the guard sighed and seemed to go limp, a faint glow encompassing his head. An elf moved up swiftly and sliced the Sslik's throat, causing it to slump silently into the elf's arms. Ssilmath bellowed and drew his sword, striking at the elf in anger. The blade passed right through the elf, doing no damage at all, and the elf didn't seem to notice, laying the lizards corpse on the ground.

?What is this?? Ssilmath cried, looking at Kass.

?You cannot affect anything here,? She said, looking at him sadly. ?In this part of the dream, you are just an observer. Go down into the camp, near the center tent. And hurry.?

Ssilmath didn't hesitate, darting down into the camp, looking at the various sentries around it. Some were standing limply, the glow of a mesmerize about their heads, some lay with arrows in their bodies, some were being lowered to the ground by assassins. He urged his legs faster, and finally reached the center tent, just in time to see a tiny blue Sslik walk out of it, leading a smaller red hatchling.

The young ones walked to a nearby bush and climbed into it, answering the call of his bladder, just as the mammals made it into the camp itself. Silently they went from tent to tent, murdering some, mesmerizing or binding others. Silently they covered about half the camp, when a warrior that had left for a drink came back and let loose a scream of anger and warning. An arrow put it down quickly, but the camp had been alerted, and sleep blinded Sslik crawled out of their tents, some with weapons, others without. All were cut down quicklyand mercilessly.

A tall and heavily muscled Sslik stepped out of the main tent, spear and shield in hand, eyes taking in the carnage. Instantly it gave a war cry and leapt forward, impaling a half giant, then blocking a strike from a human. It used the shaft of the spear to brain the human, then used it's shield to do the same to a charging dwarf. The tiny blue Sslik watched fearfully as the mighty reptile cut down soldier after soldier, and the few remaining warriors rallied to it. Fires had been started in some tents, and captives were being herded or dragged into a large clearing, but still the Sslik fought on. Then the Fiend arrived.

Captain Nyderon Talenbal was of medium build and height, wearing red and black scalemail armor and carrying a longsword and shield. He marched down to where the remaining Sslik had been ringed in, backed by a contingent of archers. They moved to one side of the warriors and stopped, Talenbal sizing them up.

?Take down the Sslik, but leave the large one to me,? he ordered, nodding to the head archer.

Fifty arrows sprang forth, snapping into scaled flesh and dropping the Sslik instantly. The elder narrowed it's eyes, then slapped his spear on his shield and growled out a curse in Sslik. Talenbal shrugged, then stepped forward into a ring made by his soldiers. The fiend stood, calm and cold, then started moving slowly towards the cheiftan, ready for anything. All of the soldiers eyes were on the two combatants, as well as a pair of young Sslik eyes.

The elder waited till the fiend was in range, then feinted, pulling back at the last second. The fiend moved it's shield to block then abruptly spun as the spear came in at a new angle, placing his shield on the Sslik's hand and spinning to place his back against the reptiles, continuing on and slashing as he finished the move. His blade struck an expertly placed shield and deflected, but the fiend didn't wait, stabbing right away only to have the strike blocked away again and getting forced back by a vicious stab.

Ssil watched in amazement as the dance continued, both combatants equally matched. Finally, the fiend slipped, opening himself up. The cheiftan took the opportunity and stabbed, sliding the spearhead into a chink in the armor and piercing into Talenbal's lower abdomen. But instead of crying out, the mammal simply smiled and dropped it's shield, pulling out a dagger with lightning speed and slicing with his sword at the same time. The Sslik blocked the sword strike, but was defenceless to the dagger that buried itself in the reptiles breastbone. It gasped and pulled back, reaching up with it's shield arm to try and remove the weapon, and leaving itself open.

Talenbal laughed and struck, slicing into the cheiftans leg and bringing it to the ground, then striking once more at the shocked creature. A Sslik head bounced to the ground, feathers staining from the blood that poured forth. A gnome stepped forward and cast a simple healing spell on Talenbal, his wound closing easily.

?Skin the dead, boys!? Talenbal yelled. His troops cheered and began going about the task. ?But don't stop there. Skin the living too.

?You, elf,? he said to a young ranger. ?Get a good fire going. That's where they'll go after they are skinned, wether they are living or dead.?

The elf saluted and gathered up some others to start the task as the Sslik screams of agony began. Talenbal stood in the middle, laughing and encouraging his soldiers into an orgy of pain and barbarism. Ssilmath stood nearby, hate and disgust warring on his face as he watched, helpless. Kass walked up next to him.

?I am sorry you had to see this, but you deserve to know the truth,? she whispered, then pointed behind him. The small blue Sslik had covered the hatchling as well as possible, then snuck away into the undergrowth. ?You tried to hide your sibling, Dranis, and then you fled. You got away, and the jungle took you in.?

?But Dranis?? Ssil asked worridly.

?He was found,? Kass said, pointing at an armorclad Saris investigating the bush.

The cacophany of cries continued to increase, the inferno getting hotter. Ssilmath turned to Kass, pain, anger and terror warring on his face. Kass sighed, then a wind picked up, surrounding them in a vortex of flame.

?That is why you are my Vengeance Unleashed upon the Empire and all mammals,? She said, her words mingling with the roar of the flames. ?I see something coming, something that will allow you to be my hand in the world forever. But only if you accept it. Will you take my power as yours??

?Yes...what do I have to do?? Ssilmath asked, eyes blazing.

?You will have none but me close to your heart, and will kill when I tell you,? She replied with a smile. ?You will be my sword forever, and will only have me as your friend. Act when I say, and not any other time. Your escape will be soon, but not yet.?

?I promise Kass, only you shall be close to my heart,? Ssilmath vowed, closing his eyes. ?I will be your sword of vengeance unleashed.?

The flames whipped up, closing in on Ssilmath, slowling enveloping Kass. His oath echoed in his head, as they flames closed in about him. His flesh burned, branded by the fire. His mind was seared with the promise as he was finally enveloped and consumed.

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In the dark, a grizzled human slave listened to the big Sslik talking in it's sleep. Over and over again the same phrase after several minutes of inane babble.

?Kazz no ramma, ithilrey trijgala mahjolin. No rithjag gorlicrith malla zzilmath torshak.?

Keep up the good work!
Me like your stories :)